Holiday Extras® directors get legs waxed for Children In Need
[November 2008]
Staff at Holiday Extras® in Hythe raised an exceptional £10,709.77 for Children In Need during a fun-filled day on November 14, 2008.
Many members of the team dressed in pyjamas to mark the occasion, with prizes awarded to the best dressed. Those who opted not to honour the new dress code were duly fined, with the money raised going to Children In Need.
In what was dubbed the ‘Marmite Challenge’, Compare manager Andy Skinner and web template builder Mark Burch attempted the heroic feat of trying to consume a 500g jar of the spread you either love or hate in just 90 minutes. Mark managed a creditable 50g, but Andy valiantly struggled on to digest an amazing 400g before conceding defeat.
The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the leg waxing auction which saw several of the Holiday Extras directors, including CEO Steve Lawrence, bravely 'volunteering' to have their legs waxed by members of staff who had bid the highest amount for the privilege. Steve Lawrence, CEO at Holiday Extras, said: “We are delighted that everyone here at Holiday Extras entered into the spirit of the day, and raised such a fantastic amount of money for such a worthwhile cause.”
A spread of cakes donated by staff plus a raffle also helped to boost the total raised for Children In Need.
A Very Special thanks to Heather Elder and Sarah Smith (pictured with the cheque), for making the day so successful.
Holiday Extras® donation to Demelza House
[October 2008]
The Holiday Extras® board set aside £100,000 for charitable donations in 2008, with three local charities each being awarded £25,000.
The remainder is being divided between other good causes. The presentation to Demelza House follows Kent Air Ambulance's receipt of their cheque at the Holiday Extras 25th anniversary lunch in April. The Pilgrims Hospice will be receiving the third donation later in the year.
Chief executive officer Steve Lawrence presented £25,000 to Keith Lee, area fundraising manager of the Demelza House Children's Hospice. "
We were delighted to offer our support to Demelza House,” said Steve. “We hope that our contribution will help to ensure that they continue to fulfil their excellent work, and look forward to raising even more funds in the future."
Keith Lee, in accepting the donation, said: “For a local company to donate such a significant sum is a boon for the organisation, particularly in a period when many companies are facing difficult economic conditions. “This money will go a long way in financing our operation and benefit the children at the hospice.”
Alongside the £25,000 presentation to Demelza House, the charity also received a donation of £250, raised by a recent barbecue held by the company's Customer Relations and Finance department.
Holiday Extras late summer fete
[September 2008]
The summer spirit lived on at Holiday Extras as the company hosted a traditional summer fete with the aim of raising funds for local charities.
Staff at the Hythe-based company donated personal belongings to sell on a second-hand stall, sold homemade cakes and even held a tombola in an effort to raise funds for the Kent Air Ambulance Trust and the Demelza House Children's Hospice.
Following a day of activities, including a barbecue, the team at Holiday Extras raised £250 which was then matched by the company. The total £500 will be divided between the two charities.
The events were arranged by the company's Customer Relations and Finance departments. Angela Day, finance assistant at Holiday Extras, said: "I'm surprised at how much we managed to raise in such a short time. Both charities are a worthy cause, and for the company to double the amount means each will be the beneficiary of a valuable donation."
Help a Kent Child
[July 2008]
Holiday Extras took part in a week of activity-filled days that successfully raised £1,494 for the Help a Kent Child charity.
Established in 2003, Help a Kent Child (registered charity no.1091657) was set up with the aim of enabling local disadvantaged children to fulfil otherwise impossible dreams and ambitions.
Barbecues, quizzes and a rounders tournament took place at the company’s headquarters in Newingreen, Hythe.
The highlight of the week came on Friday July 25 as teams took part in a 'school sports day' with egg and spoon races, Wellington boot throwing, three-legged races and more. The overall team winners of the event, 'Year 1 Class 5', won a prize of six bottles of wine.
Holiday Extras donation to Kids Kidney Research
[December 2007]
Holiday Extras employee Jason Brookman organised an auction at Holiday Extras for Kids Kidney Research. Various artists and actors donated original signed CDs, DVDs, posters, books, show tickets and other memorabilia. The auction was held by local auctioneer Michael Hogben who has appeared on television programmes such as Bargain Hunt.
The auction raised £665.50 and Holiday Extras contributed a further £704.00 to bring the grand total to £1,369.50
Kids Kidney Research raises money to support vital kidney research for babies and children across the UK. Research areas include defining the best treatment for children that suffer from vesicoureteric reflux, exploring new therapies to potentially heal damaged kidneys and finding the faulty genes which can cause kidney diseases.
Kent school transformed
[September 2007]
Gerry Pack, the founder and Non-Executive Chairman of Holiday Extras Holdings Limited, is passionate about good education and creating opportunity for young people. Gerry is involved in a major sponsorship project for Academies in Kent. The most recent Academy to benefit has been the newly opened Spires Academy in Sturry, which replaces the former Montgomery School. The gates of the new Spires Academy opened to newly uniformed students on Thursday 13th september. The following week an official opening ceremony was attended by the Minister for Schools, Lord Adonis, who said that the Academy was "a fantastic venture".
Out to Africa
[September 2007]
Three staff from Holiday Extras and sister companies Airparks and abcholidayplus in Germany travelled out to Mombasa in Kenya at the beginning of October to volunteer at the Grandsons of Abraham orphanage in the city.
The three people were nominated by their heads of department for their outstanding work at Holiday Extras. They stayed at the orphanage for two weeks, returning home on 16 October. Holiday Extras is paid for the airfares, insurance, jabs, accommodation and meals, and an extra week's paid holiday.
It is estimated that up to 900,000 children in Kenya have been orphaned by HIV/Aids, and the Grandsons of Abraham Rescue Centre has been working since 1995 to offer street children shelter, food and basic education. So far the organisation has worked closely with over 2000 children and found a home for over 400 of them.
The teams at Holiday Extras, Airparks and abcholidayplus in Germany have raised over £1,000 to enable the volunteers to contribute extra essential items for the orphanage.
Art exhibition supports The Pilgrims Hospice
[June 2007]
Holiday Extras and sister companies Oak Creative and Airparks Services held a Summer Art Exhibition in support of The Pilgrims Hospice at the old Royal Oak Building in Newingreen near Hythe which started on Saturday 16 June.
The Pilgrim's Hospice art group, members of the Holiday Extras team and their families exhibited paintings, drawings, photography, sculpture, textiles, pottery and jewellery. "We wanted to create a fun and memorable event to support an important local charity, and to give staff and their families an opportunity to get together and do something creative," said Caroline Butterfield, partner at Oak Creative.
Exhibitors donated £1 for each artwork they submitted plus 15% commission for any piece sold to The Pilgrims Hospice in Kent. The event raised nearly £500 for the hospice.
| Matthew Pack with the cheque for £500 for Yvonne Archer and the Pilgrims Hospice |
Holiday Extras' donation to the Pilgrims Hospice
[January 2007] This year Holiday Extras decided to help the environment by sending an email Christmas Card rather than the traditional paper based variety.
The consequential savings have been donated to the very worthy cause of the Pilgrim's Hospice in Kent.
The Pilgrims Hospice is invaluable to the community offering freely available professional palliative care at home in the three hospices - in Ashford, Canterbury and Margate.
Holiday Extras in the Local Community
Holiday Extras supports the work experience schemes run by several local schools and offers young people the chance to gain valuable work experience - We offer our work experience students an insight into the workings of our business - all interested students get the chance to gain knowledge in a wide range of departments - from the contact centre to the web to finance etc...
The company believe in effecting sponsorship and charities in our immediate community - most of our sponsorships have been implemented to good causes in our surrounding area - We have built parish notice boards in local villages. We also donate various prizes to fetes and raffles.
Each year Holiday Extras employees vote for charities to support throughout the year. We usually select one local charity and one national charity. Recently we have supported the Kent Air Ambulance and Cancer Research.
Due to the large amount of charitable requests that Holiday Extras receives we are not able to respond to every letter or email - Our donation budget is earmarked for pre-selected charities, local schools and in-house fundraising.
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